FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

March 29, 2007

City of Asheville
Office of the Mayor

Contact: Lauren Bradley
Day: (828) 259-5484

MAYOR BELLAMY SET TO DELIVER STATE OF THE CITY ADDRESS APRIL 3

Mayor Terry M. Bellamy will deliver her annual State of the City
address on Tuesday, April 3 at 5 p.m. in the Council Chamber on the second
floor of City Hall. The address is open to public and will be televised
live on the Asheville Channel, Charter Cable channel 11.

The mayor¢s address will focus on public safety, growth and improving
the quality of life for Asheville families. It is expected she will
cover highlights and accomplishments from that last year as well as key
issues on the city¢s agenda moving forward.

Seating is limited in the Council Chamber and will be filled on a first
come, first served basis. The address will be televised in City
Hall¢s First Floor North Conference Room where overflow seating will be
available.

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The Corruption in North Carolina goes on despite Jim Black's reservation at Club Fed:

Raleigh News and Observer

I read about another episode where Asheville City Councilman Dr. Carl Mumpower has confronted Asheville's acceptance of open-air drug use, as well as marketing efforts. Earlier this year, there was a bru-ha-ha regarding opean-air drug markets in the projects, or Public Housing areas. Some police and council members thought he was interfering with police work.

Here again, he is exposing the drug trade in a public area, and in another facility paid for with tax dollars. A snippet:

Councilman Carl

Mumpower spent 15 minutes at the concert, where he said he confronted a “surreal” scene that included a man threatening a urinal, another man in the same bathroom buying pills and marijuana being smoked around the auditorium. “A 1,700-member drug party, to me, in a tax-supported facility is not a good thing,” he said.

Mumpower said Asheville Civic Center staff members had approached him with their concerns. He decided police and security aren’t doing enough to shut down the party.

What are the differences between the police response at this event, and their hesitance to act on tips in the Public Housing Project? I think Political Correctness migtht have something to do with it.

Another, funny snippet:

Chief Bill Hogan said police, including the off-duty officers paid by the Civic Center, make a special effort to crack down during concerts by bands infamous for attracting drug users. They do most of their work outside the auditorium, he said.

“When you get the crowd bunched up, and the lights go down and the performance begins, it’s hard to move in the crowd,” Hogan said.

Among the suspects police arrested was Robert Jeremiah Lairy, 29. He was charged with three counts of trafficking in LSD, a drug Hogan said is unusual in Asheville except at concerts.

I suppose Chief Hogan is blissfully unaware that most of the acid for western North Carolina comes through Asheville.

Source: Asheville Citizen-Times

Hat Tip: western guy

I haven't heard much about this guy, but look forward to hearing more.
PS I'll be posting here while Blogger acts up, and refuses to let me post on Thunder Pig today. This new blogger is really starting to suck, and may drive me off the platform...by design?
/conspiracy nut
^^
>
@

EVER WONDER HOW IT‘S DONE?
Try the Good Ol’ Boy Network
By Ann Ryder



Last week I had a call telling me that the Wake senator, Janet Cowell, had a conflict of interest. She works for Fountainworks, a market research and policy consulting firm, whose clients include DHHS and other state agencies, and she serves on the Legislative Oversight Committee on MH/DD/SAS (mental health is under DHHS). Chairing the committee are Senator Martin Nesbitt and Representative Verla Insko. Serving as a consultant to the committee is Larry Thompson, head of Blue Ridge Area Authority for more than 20 years. One wonders if Fountainworks gets its name from disgraced former Senator Fountain Odum? This writer has found no evidence of such, but political circles are very small. Fountain's wife, Carmen Hooker Odum is in charge of our state's mental health operations.

It sounded interesting, especially since Thompson and his gang are currently under investigation by Auditor Les Merritt. And talk about conflicts of interest!…Nesbitt’s racing team is sponsored by Blue Cross-Blue Shield and he votes on matters concerning them. The mental health reform, which is an absolute disaster, was sponsored by Senator Steve Metcalf who resigned his senate seat under a cloud. Metcalf was a partner in the company that played a major part in the reform, MGT of America. It smelled already…and I was just getting started. (Aside #1…were you aware that while the state is shutting down our psychiatric hospitals, it is increasing the bed space in prison psycho wards?…half the cost would be my guesstimate.) (Aside #2...During the rally to honor John Rhodes at A-B Tech last Saturday evening, Chad Nesbitt, Martin Nesbitt’s stepson, told the audience that when his mother first heard of Jim Black’s plea of guilt, she said, “Ohmygod, is Martin next?”)

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North Carolina Conservative

Indeed, it is my belief that former Democratic House Speaker Jim Black will serve as the key-log that will break the log jam.